2010/12/8

Quiet Night Thoughts

(Adam Cheung)

Kubrick Poetry celebrated November by bringing together familiar faces and new participants.

Adam started off the session by posing some questions about home. He talked about the idea of having two homes, and he posted a picture of his home in Hong Kong juxtaposed with a picture of his home in Canada. Then he followed with readings from City Voices (an anthology of writings from Hong Kong) and Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino’s well-known work. To him, home always has a connection with the city.

Joy returned to Kubrick Poetry after several months’ absence. This time, she was dressed for the occasion, wearing a t-shirt with the name of her hometown written on it. In addition to reading a poem of her own, she also produced an English translation of Li Bai’s “Quiet Night Thoughts”《靜夜思》Several participants admitted that Li Bai’s poem is the first poem that comes to mind when they think of home.

Lou entered the discussion by talking about how home seems to be something distant even when he lives with his family, and yet, during his journey to South America, he was amazed by the way the local people received him as though he was a member of their homes. Lou went on to share a Chinese poem he wrote for a friend’s wedding. This was followed by Florence’s reading of a poem by the legendary Polish poet, Wislawa Szymborska.

Crystal, in her first time participating in Kubrick Poetry, began by sharing Angela Aki’s song, 手紙～拝啓十五の君へ(A Letter Written to You Who is Fifteen). Crystal invited us to think about what things we would like to say to those who are younger than us, who are about to experience what we are experiencing. We also had the pleasure of seeing her picture diary, a small sketchbook that pulls open like an accordion. The diary reminds us that poetry is composed not just in words, but also in drawings. We were moved by her ability to record everyday experiences in quick and small sketches.